KZ650 winter build, the end result......

CrazyCanuckGoat · March 9th, 2015, 07:31 PM

I've still got my ZZR250 for commuting and road trips, but I finally did something over the winter with a 77 KZ650B that I had sitting around for a year.

I'm terrible for taking pics DURING a build, so here is the end result:

csmith12 · March 9th, 2015, 08:04 PM

Alex · March 9th, 2015, 11:56 PM

Nice!

crazymadbastard · March 10th, 2015, 03:58 AM

I was wondering about this build, looks great!

more pics and what did you do to it?

gantt · March 10th, 2015, 05:44 AM

Looks great!

alex.s · March 10th, 2015, 09:31 AM

i love the old KZ style bikes

Roark · March 10th, 2015, 02:13 PM

MAD MAX

CrazyCanuckGoat · March 10th, 2015, 02:31 PM

Thanks people!

Everything has been replaced on it from cables/bearings/sprockets/chain/oil seals.

I was kind of going for a cafe racer look, but am not really fond of the typical seat hump with a round tail light. Plus I think the KZ line has a great looking ducktail once the rear steel fender is removed. I tried to make everything subtle.

The tail of the frame, ducktail, seatpan and foam have all been sectioned 4 inches. I did it this way so I was able to retain the stock seat hinges. I also mounted the tail slightly higher then stock.

I got rid of the stock bars and installed clip-ons. I was able to make everything work with the stock cables, hoses etc. I modified the gauge mount bracket to mount below the triple tree to lower the gauges. This unfortunantly pushed the clip-ons way too far down. Function over form sometimes I guess.

The last big pain in my ass (besides the paint) was the Ebay Pazzo style levers. They don't make adapters for a KZ, so I used Ninja 250 pieces. The clutch lever bolted right on, but the brake ratio was all wrong. I spent hours welding/grinding to get it to work properly. So much for a simple "bolt on"

The paint is GM Cordova Brown. It really pops in the sunlight.

It's got old school Jardine 4 into 2's and it sounds sweet.

Once the snow disappears, hopefully be ripping around on it soon.

crazymadbastard · March 10th, 2015, 03:24 PM

Only suggested change is that you park it in my garage. For safe keeping of course.

CrazyCanuckGoat · March 10th, 2015, 03:29 PM

Hahahaha........no

It just sat in my garage untouched last year. Now that it's redone, I don't think I could even sell it, I'm too excited to ride it. Maybe it's been the 4 month winter wait to ride again.

I should add, considering the bike is 37 years old, there hasn't been too much butchered on it by the previous owners.

gantt · March 11th, 2015, 04:12 AM

I love the tail! Just beautiful lines for sure.

The Red Scourge · March 11th, 2015, 05:48 AM

It looks great! I love those old KZ's. I've wanted a KZ-1000 ever since I saw Mad Max for the first time in high school. I like that you kept a lot of the original lines. I kept seeing this thread on the portal and I didn't click on it for the last few days because I kept reading it as "KLR650 winter build". I'm glad I checked it out!

CrazyCanuckGoat · March 11th, 2015, 03:07 PM

Once I removed the chrome fender, the ducktail really grew on me. Kawasaki really did well on that design in the 70's.

There is a 78 KZ1000 that just went up for sale here. I'm so tempted, but I don't really need 3 bikes.......or do I? hahaha

I also had a line on an 83 750 turbo that I was going to put in the bike. The guy changed his mind on the price last second, so the deal never went through. Too bad considering they are rare around here.

Sirref · March 11th, 2015, 03:14 PM

god I love classic bikes

crazymadbastard · March 11th, 2015, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrazyCanuckGoat

I don't really need 3 bikes......

vote to ban

CrazyCanuckGoat · March 11th, 2015, 07:13 PM

lol

It's not so much having 3 bikes, it's the insurace costs in my province thanks to MPI and our short riding season.

petersophy · March 18th, 2015, 07:24 PM

What color is that? I'm guessing bronze?

CrazyCanuckGoat · April 9th, 2015, 06:10 PM

It's a GM colour.........Cordova Brown

March 9th, 2015, 08:04 PM	#2
csmith12 The Corner Whisperer Name: Chris (aka Reactor) Location: Northern KY Join Date: May 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2010 250 (track), 1992 250, 2006 R6 (street/track), 2008 R6 (track) Posts: Too much. MOTY 2015, MOTM - Nov '12, Nov '13	__________________________________________________ Goal: Shake A Million Hands \| Look through the corners \| Track Day Prep \| Closest track? \| The Mid-Ohio School

March 9th, 2015, 11:56 PM	#3
Alex ninjette.org dude Name: 1 guess :-) Location: SF Bay Area Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 7	Nice! __________________________________________________ Montgomery Street Motorcycle Club / cal24.com / crf250l.org / ninjette.org ninjette.org Terms of Service Shopping for motorcycle parts or equipment? Come here first. The friendliest Ninja 250R/300/400 forum on the internet! (especially Unregistered)

March 10th, 2015, 03:58 AM	#4
crazymadbastard I'm crazy,your excuse is? Name: Winston Location: Connecticut Join Date: May 2013 Motorcycle(s): 250 2007 ninja Posts: A lot.	I was wondering about this build, looks great! more pics and what did you do to it? __________________________________________________ My Cafe Racer Build My intro post

March 10th, 2015, 09:31 AM	#6
alex.s wat Name: wat Location: tustin/long beach Join Date: Sep 2009 Motorcycle(s): wat Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 5 MOTM - Oct '12, Feb '14	i love the old KZ style bikes __________________________________________________

March 10th, 2015, 02:13 PM	#7
Roark ninjette.org sage Name: James Location: Lakeland Join Date: Aug 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninjette Posts: 809	MAD MAX __________________________________________________ "That's what" -she

March 10th, 2015, 05:44 AM	#5
gantt ninjette.org sage Name: michael Location: Central Georgia Join Date: May 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2019 Ninja 400, Sold 2012 Ninja 650, Sold 2009 Ninja 250r, Sold 2007 DRZ400s Posts: 628	Looks great!

March 10th, 2015, 02:31 PM	#8
CrazyCanuckGoat ninjette.org member Name: Rob Location: Winnipeg Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2003 ZX12R (sold), 2012 250R, 1975 Honda XL250, 1980 XJ650 Posts: 99	Thanks people! Everything has been replaced on it from cables/bearings/sprockets/chain/oil seals. I was kind of going for a cafe racer look, but am not really fond of the typical seat hump with a round tail light. Plus I think the KZ line has a great looking ducktail once the rear steel fender is removed. I tried to make everything subtle. The tail of the frame, ducktail, seatpan and foam have all been sectioned 4 inches. I did it this way so I was able to retain the stock seat hinges. I also mounted the tail slightly higher then stock. I got rid of the stock bars and installed clip-ons. I was able to make everything work with the stock cables, hoses etc. I modified the gauge mount bracket to mount below the triple tree to lower the gauges. This unfortunantly pushed the clip-ons way too far down. Function over form sometimes I guess. The last big pain in my ass (besides the paint) was the Ebay Pazzo style levers. They don't make adapters for a KZ, so I used Ninja 250 pieces. The clutch lever bolted right on, but the brake ratio was all wrong. I spent hours welding/grinding to get it to work properly. So much for a simple "bolt on" The paint is GM Cordova Brown. It really pops in the sunlight. It's got old school Jardine 4 into 2's and it sounds sweet. Once the snow disappears, hopefully be ripping around on it soon.

March 10th, 2015, 03:24 PM	#9
crazymadbastard I'm crazy,your excuse is? Name: Winston Location: Connecticut Join Date: May 2013 Motorcycle(s): 250 2007 ninja Posts: A lot.	Only suggested change is that you park it in my garage. For safe keeping of course. __________________________________________________ My Cafe Racer Build My intro post

March 10th, 2015, 03:29 PM	#10
CrazyCanuckGoat ninjette.org member Name: Rob Location: Winnipeg Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2003 ZX12R (sold), 2012 250R, 1975 Honda XL250, 1980 XJ650 Posts: 99	Hahahaha........no It just sat in my garage untouched last year. Now that it's redone, I don't think I could even sell it, I'm too excited to ride it. Maybe it's been the 4 month winter wait to ride again. I should add, considering the bike is 37 years old, there hasn't been too much butchered on it by the previous owners.

March 11th, 2015, 04:12 AM	#11
gantt ninjette.org sage Name: michael Location: Central Georgia Join Date: May 2013 Motorcycle(s): 2019 Ninja 400, Sold 2012 Ninja 650, Sold 2009 Ninja 250r, Sold 2007 DRZ400s Posts: 628	I love the tail! Just beautiful lines for sure.

March 11th, 2015, 05:48 AM	#12
The Red Scourge ninjette.org member Name: James Location: Asheville, NC Join Date: Oct 2013 Motorcycle(s): '76 Yamaha RD400, '71 Kawasaki G3SS, '88 Honda CBR400RR, '90 Yamaha FZR400/600 hybrid Posts: 138	It looks great! I love those old KZ's. I've wanted a KZ-1000 ever since I saw Mad Max for the first time in high school. I like that you kept a lot of the original lines. I kept seeing this thread on the portal and I didn't click on it for the last few days because I kept reading it as "KLR650 winter build". I'm glad I checked it out! __________________________________________________ "When in doubt, gas it!"

March 11th, 2015, 03:07 PM	#13
CrazyCanuckGoat ninjette.org member Name: Rob Location: Winnipeg Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2003 ZX12R (sold), 2012 250R, 1975 Honda XL250, 1980 XJ650 Posts: 99	Once I removed the chrome fender, the ducktail really grew on me. Kawasaki really did well on that design in the 70's. There is a 78 KZ1000 that just went up for sale here. I'm so tempted, but I don't really need 3 bikes.......or do I? hahaha I also had a line on an 83 750 turbo that I was going to put in the bike. The guy changed his mind on the price last second, so the deal never went through. Too bad considering they are rare around here.

March 11th, 2015, 03:14 PM	#14
Sirref Private Joker Name: Ben Location: Towson, MD Join Date: Nov 2012 Motorcycle(s): '99/'01 Ninja 250 "sketchy", '13 Ninja 300 "yoshi", '03 GSXR 600 "merlin" Posts: A lot. MOTM - Mar '14	god I love classic bikes __________________________________________________ I see you over there seeing me, do you see the me I think you see?

March 11th, 2015, 07:13 PM	#16
CrazyCanuckGoat ninjette.org member Name: Rob Location: Winnipeg Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2003 ZX12R (sold), 2012 250R, 1975 Honda XL250, 1980 XJ650 Posts: 99	lol It's not so much having 3 bikes, it's the insurace costs in my province thanks to MPI and our short riding season.

March 18th, 2015, 07:24 PM	#17
petersophy ninjette.org member Name: Peter Location: Queens, New York Join Date: Mar 2014 Motorcycle(s): '01 250R and 13' Ninja 300 Posts: 28	What color is that? I'm guessing bronze?

April 9th, 2015, 06:10 PM	#18
CrazyCanuckGoat ninjette.org member Name: Rob Location: Winnipeg Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): 2003 ZX12R (sold), 2012 250R, 1975 Honda XL250, 1980 XJ650 Posts: 99	It's a GM colour.........Cordova Brown

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